A Vampire-Like Way of Loving
by PikaPown
Summary: A short recollection of Shizuka's life. One shot intended, but may be added to later.


~Shizuka's POV~

I'd like to say I lived a pleasant life behind those iron bars, away from the petty disputes between vampire and hunter. Where silence was the sweetest of songs and daydreams were my form of entertainment. Yes, _silence_. That was all I ever truly wished for for over a thousand years. My time within that cage was ironic. Amusingly so. It was nothing more than the serenity of my own "domain" of sorts that I treasured so dearly, and, dare I say, the savagery of being a demonic entity that preyed upon humans. _My_ existence was intended to be one devoid of love and other such trivial emotions, or so I thought. But if and when I must think of feeling, I think of _him_.

Unlike so many of his predecessors before him, _he_ was the first of his kind to openly glare at me, to be tossed into my cage unafraid, undisturbed by my crimson stained eyes that stared daggers into the bare flesh of his neck. I had felt a child-like curiosity then. Why, when others trembled at the mere sight of me, did this man not? That question replayed in my head many a time. It still does to this very moment.

If not for the opening of my mouth when I had first met him, if he didn't _exis_t, then perhaps I would not be lying in a pool of my own blood, and I never would have met this young man at my side, supporting my dying body with his arms. Nonetheless, the worry of leaving Ichiru behind did not really register in my mind.

No, instead I took comfort in welcoming the pitch black darkness that was sure to follow my passing.

I was free to drown in the quiet sorrow of my existence and refuse to remember the good things in this life of mine. I could lie here and listen to the sound of absolute _silence_. But when all that I have left to look at is the agonized face of the second most beautiful person I had ever the honor and displeasure to meet, the force of those good memories destroyed all other thoughts that had dominated my mind as of late. His sobbing quietly drifted into the inner most recesses of my consciousness.

At this moment in time, I had forcibly pushed the image of Ichiru's face out of my mind and focused on something much darker, a memory I would rather see removed from the recollection of my life. That day, all those years ago, when my beloved had been stolen from me, forever.

That man and I had agreed to flee the confines of my prison and live somewhere, far from the ridiculous "Vampire-Hunter War" that had killed so many of my kind. I did not want to risk the life of my beloved. After all, he was only an Ex-Human. There were many hunters in the world that could kill him. One thing struck me as odd, however. While he did not comply with all my orders, he had not resisted my proposal to escape, not in the slightest. In the end, however, I believe he had nowhere else to go, no family to return to. At this, I felt guilty. I had taken away his humanity, against his will. I took _everything_ from him. And did I expect him to reciprocate my feelings for him? I was blind then. I lived in the excitement of "love", alone. Maybe he did care for me, maybe he did not.

I suppose I will never know.

We were strolling through a grove of sakura trees. A beautiful one. He had trailed slightly behind me, drinking in the lovely sight that lay around us. I turned, maybe to ask him how he was, or if he enjoyed the sakura.

But he was gone.

All that remained was a pile of grey, dull, ash, and his clothes. The sight struck me profoundly. My eyes widened indefinitely. My heart raced at inhuman speeds. I could feel my throat tighten up, painfully so. And then it happened. My whole entire life, I had never cried. I never bothered to learn. Until that moment, at least. I had collapsed by his ashen remains. I dug my fingers into them, and I cried. Many tears strolled down my cheeks. I stayed liked that, for a few more hours. Eventually, I had risen from my spot on the ground, and I began to follow the scent of the hunter that had killed him. It was a woman, in her early thirties. She had a family, a husband, and two twin sons. Now _that_ was interesting. I had assumed that hunters did not have twins, because of the cursed placed on them thousands of years ago. I was happily disappointed, however.

And then, a cruel smile had twisted upon my face. I would kill this hunter and her husband, and curse one of their twins.

And I did. But something…unexpected had happened. I remember, on that fateful day, when I was to kill the Kiryuu family, I met a boy, perhaps no older than thirteen. I learned about his past, and how shockingly alike it was to mine. I could see the pain in his eyes. How they desperately begged me to take him away from his despicable parents. So, I had made a deal with him. I would take him away, in exchange for his parent's life and his brother's humanity, at his persistence. His endearing love for his brother touch me, somewhere in my tar black soul. I had thought the deal I made that night with the boy was ridiculous and would only amuse me.

Was I ever wrong.

Ichiru, you have been good to me all these years. Despite my cynical and snarky behavior towards you, your loyalty and feelings for me never wavered. That was something I longed for from my beloved, but of course, our romance was a fleeting one, and I don't believe he truly loved me in the end. But _you_, your kindness never faltered, and in return, I grew a soft attachment to you, which eventually blossomed into, dare I say, love.

Yes, I loved you, just as you did me. But I could never tell you this. The people that would kill for such information just to hurt me again…there are many of them. I wanted to protect you.

At this point, my consciousness was fading ever rapidly, my blurry vision beckoning me to internal slumber. Ichiru's eyes widened significantly when he noticed this. He begged me to stay, to not leave him, that I could take his blood and everything would be alright. I refused, and told him it was already too late. Instead, I gave him my own flesh and blood, as a symbol of my love for him.

It's a very vampire-like way of loving, isn't it?


End file.
